American Romanticism (______to ______)
DEFINITIONS:
 Romantic Love is NOT the same as Romanticism in Literature. When it comes to literature and the arts,
the word ROMANTIC has a _________________definition than how we commonly use the word
today.
 This is a movement about the ___________________ of emotion, desire, and freedom from constraint.
"She's a real Romantic." = dreamer, idealist, nonconformist, on a quest for undefined or unfamiliar goals
 American Romanticism was…a journey away from the _________________________ OF
CIVILIZATION and the LIMITS OF ___________________THOUGHT to the integrity of
____________________ and the freedom of the__________________________.
 The Romantic writers or the original European movement lived in ____________________________.
 The American Romantic writers lived in ______________________________.
CAUSES/HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR THE AMERICAN MOVEMENT:
 The 1803 ____________________________________________ doubled America’s size.
 The War of 1812 interfered with trade, so Americans had to start producing items they were used to
importing, thus, leading to the _______________________________________.
 Effects of this change, especially in cities such as NYC:
•Poverty, families lived in overcrowded slums and __________________________.
• 1832 - streets filled with squalor and ______________________.
• 20,000 children were _________________ and many worked in ___________________.
• Cholera killed ____________ people a day
 American writers/artists began to react to the negative effects of industrialization by turning to…
1. The beauty and spiritual power of _________________________________.
2. The power of the ______________________ rather than reason and ___________________.
3. A celebration of the _______________________rather than society.
CHANGES IN AMERICAN WRITING:
 For the first time, American writers stopped imitating
_______________________, and an American style of writing emerged.
 Washington Irving becomes the first famous American
_______________________ writer. His stories rely on the features of
____________ tales and __________. They often feature _______________ locales and
______________________events.
 James Fenimore Cooper creates the first American series of novels that feature a
________________________ leading adventures in the
__________________________________.
 Writers created stories that allowed readers to experience grand adventures! For
the first time American writers are creating opportunities for readers to
experience __________________ and
____________________ instead of merely
_____________________ and
_____________________________________.
 However, above all, the most celebrated art form of
American Romanticism was _____________
 The Fireside Poets
 Got their name because people--instead of watching TV, playing videogames, or texting, would
read poems out loud by their fireplaces for entertainment!
 They often emphasized _________________ themes and were committed to social reforms, such
as abolishing _____________________
 Often wrote about the spiritual truths found in __________
Rationalism
vs.
 Reason is the most reliable means to
discover truths
 Stressed the spirit of society as whole
 Lead by writers with sophisticated,
privileged backgrounds
Romanticism
 Imagination and emotion is relied
upon to discover truths
 Valued the unique spirit of the individual
 Fiction focused on unsophisticated,
common people as heroes